Unlock’s blog

There are over 11 million people in this country with a criminal record. Many of them play a vital role in contributing to the work of charities. There are many charities, including those working with people in the criminal justice system, that are ‘user led’ or actively involve their beneficiaries at a senior level in

The latest blog by Christopher Stacey reflects on last month’s landmark criminal record disclosure hearing. For people with criminal records, last month was pretty significant. The Supreme Court heard the appeal of the Government, which is arguing that their current approach to disclosing old and minor cautions and convictions on standard and enhanced criminal

With the Christmas break almost upon us and 2017 coming to an end, it’s a good time to reflect on the last 12 months work of the charity and the developments relating to criminal records. Once again it’s been an incredibly busy year for Unlock, with lots of positive news and progress to report. We’ve

The latest blog by Christopher Stacey looks at whether the supermarket in EastEnders broke the law in doing a DBS on Derek? And why did a historic decriminalised offence show up on his disclosure? Read it here.

‘Through the gate’ services are failing to support people into employment. That’s one of the conclusions in a report published last week by HM Inspectorate of Probation and HM Inspectorate of Prisons into the ‘through the gate resettlement services’ that were introduced in 2015 and run by newly formed ‘Community Rehabilitation Companies’ (CRCs). Right from

People with criminal records – An untapped talent pool that has been ignored for too long There are over 10.5 million people in England & Wales with a criminal record, and many find themselves treated unfairly and unnecessarily held back in life because of their past. Government has a role to play in finding solutions.

With the Christmas break almost here and 2016 coming to an end, I wanted to write a short blog to reflect month-by-month on our work over the last 12 months. Overall, it’s yet again been an incredibly busy year for Unlock with lots of positive news and progress to report. We’ve had an addition to

What a night! Attending the annual Longford Lecture at Church House, Westminster last night, it was a huge privilege to receive the Longford Prize 2016 on behalf of Unlock together with my Co-director Christopher Stacey. The Longford Prize ‘recognises the contribution of an individual, group or organisation working in the area of penal or social

People with convictions play an important role in many charities, particularly those working in the criminal justice sector. Becoming a trustee or leading a charity as part of the senior management team are important roles that people with convictions should be encouraged to take on, and we know it can provide people with a positive

There’s a talent pool of over 10.5 million people that many companies are overlooking. People with criminal records make good employees. This new website that we’re launching today helps employers to make sure they’re not missing out on the diverse skills and experience of people with criminal records. With over 750,000 unfilled job vacancies in